My oldest child, Connor, graduated from State College Area High School this year. While he was born in Arlington, Virginia, he did all his growing up here in the town we very intentionally moved to when he was just one year old because we believed it would be a wonderful place to raise a family. It turns out, we were right.

Connor’s graduation felt like a celebration of everyone who had a hand in raising him—teachers, coaches, neighbors, friends, parents, and family members who helped shape the person he has become.

I expected his final weeks of school to be emotional. What I didn’t expect was how many moments would catch me by surprise.

One afternoon, a letter arrived in the mail. It had been written by Connor in sixth grade to his “future self” and lovingly saved all these years by his middle school homeroom teacher, Mr. Ammerman. I watched Connor’s face as he quietly read his younger self’s words, remembering. Then he handed me the letter, and we laughed together at what twelve-year-old Connor had imagined for his future. It was just one example of the incredible care our teachers show—not only in the years they spend with our children, but in the way they continue to encourage and celebrate them long after they’ve left their classrooms.

I also didn’t realize just how many senior traditions State High has created to help students (and their families) mark this transition together. Their year began with a Senior Sunrise on the first day of school. It ended with a Senior Sunset on the last, gathering one final time to mark the close of this chapter together.

One afternoon during the final week of school, my husband Dan and I walked to Corl Street Elementary for the Senior Parade. Connor and classmates he’s known since kindergarten walked the hallways in their caps and gowns while hundreds of little voices cheered, “Go seniors! Go seniors!”

Watching these nearly-grown adults hug their kindergarten teachers, collect handwritten notes from former educators, and gather in the library to flip through old yearbooks felt surreal. Around us, parents quietly passed tissues and talked about what came next for their graduates.

The seniors also created traditions of their own. This year they organized a Senior Tailgate, making breakfast together in the senior parking lot before one of their last days of school. Connor was up super early, mixing a giant batch of pancake batter, loading the grill into our minivan, and promising to return my favorite spatula.

Graduation itself, held at Memorial Field, was intimate, joyful, and full of meaning. As tradition dictates, the graduates processed through a Teacher Tunnel before taking their seats, cheered on by the educators who had guided them along the way. Principal Tobias delivered an inspiring address about the strength and perseverance of the mighty ant, presenting each graduate with a small pewter ant to pin onto their gown as a reminder of what they’re capable of carrying into the world.

Then came one of the simplest, yet most moving moments of all. The names of all 574 graduates were read by two teachers who had taken the time to learn the correct pronunciation of every student’s first, middle, and last name. In a ceremony celebrating hundreds of graduates, every individual was acknowledged.

Watching this class graduate made me appreciate something I’ve always loved about State College but perhaps never fully understood. We raise our kids together. And when it’s finally time to let them go, we celebrate that journey together, too.

Photo credit: Will Meehan

Here’s a look back at some of Connor’s journey as a State College kid, as told in past Rediscover State College blog posts:

Libraries, Parks, and Finding Your People

Arts Fest Kids Day: When Your Kid is the Artist

Back to School (and the Bike Racks are Full!)

State College Summer Delights (and a Few Great Deals)

And, one last tradition that this year’s seniors brought back. The creation of a lip dub where every student in State High is featured!